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Monday November 14

When was the last time you were frustrated with your time tracking app, for example because you had forgotten to set a timer?

Or when you wondered what you spent all your time on today?

Timing solves this problem. Instead of making you do all the work, Timing automatically tracks how you spend your time. It logs which apps you use, which websites you visit, and which documents you edit.

Timing is essential for anyone serious about their time — power users and freelancers alike. Download the free trial now and on Friday review exactly what you did this week, down to the second.

Apple has released the third developer beta version of iOS 10.2 for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. iOS 10.2 includes several upcoming features like new Unicode 9.0 emoji, three new iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus wallpapers, a new TV app, additional camera features, and more.

Google announced a major upgrade to its streaming music service to take advantage of the company’s strengths in machine learning.

The most noticeable change at first glance to Google Play Music is a visual refresh, but the bigger deal is improved recommendations, and a helping hand when it comes to saving music offline. The interface is much less orange, instead launching with a soft white background that changes based on the different sections available to browse.

If you like a clean interface and don’t mind some extra white space, you’ll take a liking to the new Google Play Music interface.

With the new MacBook Pros with Touch Bar arriving to the first pre-order customers and going on sale at Apple stores this week, you might be looking to try out some apps that support the new hardware. Fortunately, Apple has already confirmed many apps that will get support for Touch Bar, the new contextually sensitive touchscreen panel embedded into the MacBook Pro’s keyboard, and many others app developers are announcing updates.

Apple wants to get in the content business — its future products and services might depend on it. Josh Centers explains why Apple should bid against AT&T to acquire Time Warner.

Read the full article at TidBITS, the oldest continuously published technology publication on the Internet. To get a full-text RSS feed, help support our work and become a TidBITS member! Members also enjoy an ad-free version of our Web site, email delivery of individual articles, the ability to make long comments with live links, and discounts on Take Control orders and other Apple-related products.

Google on Monday overhauled the interface for its on-demand streaming service, Play Music, with an emphasis on serving up playlists based on factors like location, activity, time of day, and even the weather.

Make someone very happy this holiday season by giving them a gift from Pad & Quill. For a limited time, these Minneapolis-based purveyors of high-quality handcrafted accessories for your Apple devices will take 10% off of your order if you use the promo code PQ10.

What kind of great products can you get to make someone's holiday happy? How about:

Valve is planning to introduce beta versions of its SteamVR platform for Mac OSX and Linux users within a few months, RoadToVr reports citing an executive. From the report:One thing's for sure, if you're a PC user wanting to indulge in a spot of immersive entertainment right now, the choice of operating systems on which you can do so are mostly limited to just one. Windows dominates the VR PC landscape right now and that looks set to continue for a while longer. However, Valve will soon move to encourage a diminishing of that monopoly, as it plans to bring SteamVR -- the company's Steam-integrated VR platform -- to both Linux and Mac OSX platforms within the next few months. The initiative was revealed by Valve's Joe Ludwig during a talk at this year's developer-focused Steam Dev Days event in Seattle last month. During the talk, Ludwig outlined the company's view that VR should be as open to innovation as possible, touting the benefits for the long term evolution of virtual...

In an interview, Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing Phil Schiller further elaborates on Apple's reasoning behind the Touch Bar on the new MacBook Pro, why Apple hasn't gone to a full touch screen, and the USB-C connector.

The new MacBook Pro with Touch Bar will be available at Apple retail stores later this week alongside demo units for customers to try, according to sources familiar with Apple’s plans.

Apple’s new MacBook Pro with Touch Bar has up until now only been available to order with a 4-5 week shipping estimate from Apple’s website, but this week the device will arrive at retail stores as the first shipments are delivered to pre-order customers. So far Apple has only had the new MacBook Pro with Touch Bar models displayed under glass with a demo loop, but this week customers should also be able to get their hands on demo units to try for themselves in at least some...

Shoppers this week can snap up a 13" MacBook Pro for $1,029.99 on eBay. Unlocked 128GB iPhone 7s are also $20 off with no tax outside NJ, while B&H Photo has CTO 2016 13" MacBook Pros in stock with no tax outside NY.

For the past couple of weeks I’ve been using three new MacBook Pros: A 13-inch entry level model; a 13-inch with Touch Bar; and my favorite, a 15-inch with Touch Bar. As with all of my reviews, I’ll give you an idea of how I use the MacBook Pros in my daily life, but I’ll also give you a look at how it performed while working on some pro music projects. […]

When I tested disabling and re-enabling iCloud sync, as Joe’s wife did, I was told I didn’t have enough storage at iCloud, even though I had nearly 90GB free and my library is about 115GB. That library was already stored in iCloud in identical form.

Instead of first comparing photos in iCloud with those on my system, I wasn’t able to proceed without upgrading my storage and then later downgrading it. (Apple lacks automatic pro-rated refunds, and even though it says you can email to obtain such a refund, I received no response to my email.)

There’s some sense in this: Apple doesn’t want you to start an operation that will fail. But it could also predict whether it would work or not.

Glenn digs in to a real problem, an edge condition with iCloud sync when you hit the limits of storage on a very temporary basis.

KGI is forecasting that iPhone shipments have now peaked for the year and that suppliers will see orders decline by anything from 5% to 15% in November and December. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo is basing this on a mixture of reduced shipments seen in the supply chain and greater stock availability as supply catches up with demand.

Australians with an Android phone don't spend enough money to make it worthwhile to develop NFC solutions for you -- at least, ZDNet says that would be one way to sum up the latest joint submission from CBA, NAB, Westpac, and Bendigo Bank to seek approval from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to collectively negotiate with Apple to gain access to the NFC element within iPhones.

"Without access to the iPhone's NFC functionality, there simply will not be the same incentives and ability to innovate for the benefit of Australian customers on either the iPhone platform or other platforms," the submission from the banks concludes. "Access to the NFC functionality on the Android platform alone cannot generate the same choice, competition, efficiencies, and innovation in integrated mobile wallets in Australia," they state.

To balance out the design, the Touch Bar’s OLED screen doesn’t extend all the way to the left edge of the glass. As a result, the Touch Bar always appears inset from the rest of the keyboard. It’s a bit weird. Fortunately, it appears that touch sensitivity extends a bit past the end of the display itself—when I tapped the corner of the Touch Bar, reflexively reaching for the Escape key, my touch would still trigger that key—even though my finger wasn’t actually touching the part of the Touch Bar displaying the virtual Escape key.

(It took me a few days to get used to the presence of the Touch Bar. Until then, I found that my pinky would slide off the carat key and make contact with the Touch Bar, triggering the virtual Escape key. I’ve trained myself not to let my finger stray up into the Touch Bar accidentally, but it was an adaptation.)

And:

The Touch Bar is an animated interface through and through. Items don’t just...

Apple tops the 2016 Global Innovation 1000 Study by Price Waterhouse (PwC). The Cupertino, California-based company has held the top spot for six years running.

Apple spent $8.1 billion on research and development last year. It beat Alphabet. Google, and Samsung on PwC’s ranking.

As it has in each of the past 11 editions of the Global Innovation 1000, this year Strategy& identified the 1,000 public companies around the world that spent the most on R&D during the last fiscal year, as of June 30, 2016. To be included, companies had to make their R&D spending numbers public. The Global Innovation 1000 companies collectively account for 40 percent of the entire world’s R&D spending, from all sources, including corporate and government sources.

The new MacBook Pro with Touch Bar is finally getting into customer’s hands, with some lucky people receiving deliveries of their new laptops today. The MacBook Pro packaging features a side-on shot of the machine with the Touch Bar displaying a vibrant color palette. Based on reader tips, it seems that those who ordered early will be receiving their laptop this week or next with many deliveries confirmed for tomorrow.

The MacBook Pro with Touch Bar has received mixed reviews from press with a lack of consensus on whether the Touch Bar is a silly gimmick or a useful addition …

Apple is realigning its familiar laptop line, dramatically reshaping and in some ways merging the favorite options for both heavy-duty “pro” users and everyday customers. And the poster child for this more muddled future is the pricey new MacBook Pro

And:

The Pro, once mainly aimed straight at people who do especially taxing work like professional video editing or serious design, is now being stretched to suit a much larger audience.

Thus the term “tweener”.

Walt noted that the MacBook Pro’s battery life was wildly inconsistent:

On my rigorous test, which I’ve used for years, the machine actually exceeded Apple’s claim of up to 10 hours of battery life. The test involves setting the screen at 100 percent, keeping it on and undimmed constantly, playing an endless loop of music, and leaving Wi-Fi on to collect email, tweets, and Facebook posts in the background. Result: 11...

No one believes this is just saber rattling on the part of the Chinese government. Sadly, the shortsighted response from many will be, “Just buy Android phones”, but that will ignore the enormous financial harm such actions will visit upon Apple and others.

The post itself is interesting, worth a read even if you have no interest in sending a message in this sidebar approach. The value is in learning about widgets (if they are new to you) and, specifically, the Social widget. Lots of nuance here:

Two finger drag from the right side of the trackpad to bring up the Notifications/Today sidebar.

Just over five years ago, IBM’s Watson supercomputer crushed opponents in the televised quiz show Jeopardy. It was hard to foresee then, but artificial intelligence is now permeating our daily lives.

Since then, IBM has expanded the Watson brand to a cognitive computing package with hardware and software used to diagnose diseases, explore for oil and gas, run scientific computing models, and allow cars to drive autonomously. The company has now announced new AI hardware and software packages.

The original Watson used advanced algorithms and natural language interfaces to find and narrate answers. Then, Watson was one supercomputer, but now AI systems are deployed at a grander scale. Mega data centers run by Facebook, Google, Amazon, and other companies use AI on thousands of servers to recognize images and speech and...

Despite what companies like Microsoft may be doing and what some customers continue asking for, Apple is really confident that you wouldn’t like a touch screen on your MacBook. Here’s Phil Schiller explaining Apple’s view on touch screen Macs to Backchannel‘s Steven Levy:

Apple came to this conclusion by testing if touch screens made sense on the Mac. “Our instincts were that it didn’t, but, what the heck, we could be wrong—so our teams worked on that for a number of times over the years,” says Schiller. “We’ve absolutely come away with the belief that it isn’t the right thing to do. Our instincts were correct.”

Of course, Apple is slowly introducing multi-touch to Macs with the release of new MacBook Pros that replace function keys with a dynamic touch panel…

Apple's new 15-inch MacBook Pro is the lightest and thinnest professional-grade notebook ever from the company. It features a high-contrast wide color Retina display, improved speakers, a larger Force Touch trackpad, versatile expansion via USB-C and Thunderbolt 3, Touch ID, and it's the first device to sport the Touch Bar input row. If you're looking to buy, AppleInsider has you covered with everything you need to know in our video review.

Microsoft will finally bring Visual Studio, a "true mobile-first, cloud-first development tool for .NET and C#," to Mac later this month, the company has said. From a report on TechCrunch:The IDE is very similar to the one found on Windows. In fact, that is presumably the point. By making it easy for OS X users to switch back and forth between platforms, Microsoft is able to ensure coders can quickly become desktop agnostic or, barring that, give Windows a try again. From the release: "At its heart, Visual Studio for Mac is a macOS counterpart of the Windows version of Visual Studio. If you enjoy the Visual Studio development experience, but need or want to use macOS, you should feel right at home. Its UX is inspired by Visual Studio, yet designed to look and feel like a native citizen of macOS. And like Visual Studio for Windows, it's complemented by Visual Studio Code for times when you don't need a full IDE, but want a lightweight yet rich standalone source editor.

With both smartphone and PC sales plateauing, tech giants like Apple and Samsung are always looking for new markets. Apple of course made a big bet on music with its $3B acquisition of Beats, and Samsung is now making an even bigger play by announcing plans to buy U.S. automotive component maker Harman International.

The WSJ reports that the $8B deal will be the biggest one Samsung has ever struck, and it has more than a little in common with Apple’s purchase of Beats …

Chief Apple rival Samsung Electronics on Monday announced plans to buy Harman International Industries for $8 billion, in a move that could signal its intention to compete against Apple and Google in smartcar technology.

Feral Interactive has launched Calico, an online game-matching service for games purchased through Apple’s Mac App Store. It was developed for the half of Mac gamers who get their games through the Mac App Store, and who have until now often been unable to enjoy the multiplayer features of the games they buy, says David Stephen, managing director at Feral Interactive.

Calico is a custom library built into Feral’s games that allows Mac gamers to play against one another online and enjoy the full multiplayer features of supported games. It currently supports standard multiplayer features, primarily game matching, friends lists and chats, achievements and leaderboards, with more functionality planned for future versions.

Several of Feral’s recent releases such as Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II , Company of Heroes 2, XCOM 2, Medieval II: Total War and GRID Autosport already include Calico and support online multiplayer for Mac App Store customers. More information on...

US president-elect Donald Trump would be a "naive" fool to launch an all-out trade war against China, a Communist party-controlled newspaper has claimed. From a report on The Guardian:During the acrimonious race for the White House Trump repeatedly lashed out at China, vowing to punish Beijing with "defensive" 45% tariffs on Chinese imports and to officially declare it a currency manipulator. "When they see that they will stop the cheating," the billionaire Republican, who has accused Beijing of "the greatest theft in the history of the world", told a rally in August. On Monday the state-run Global Times warned that such measures would be a grave mistake. "If Trump wrecks Sino-US trade, a number of US industries will be impaired. Finally the new president will be condemned for his recklessness, ignorance and incompetence," the newspaper said in an editorial. The Global Times claimed any new tariffs would trigger immediate "countermeasures" and "tit-for-tat approach" from Beijing...

Most Apple fans just can't keep enough Lightning cables around. Occasionally you'll lose one by leaving it somewhere, sometimes they get turned into a puppy or cat toy and are covered with teeth marks. So why not pick up a few of these three-packs for your future needs? Any time you need a Lightning cable, you'll have one ready to go.

It's not too early to start thinking about those holiday gifts, too -- this makes a wonderful stocking stuffer or "Secret Santa" gift, and at 50% off the normal price...

China has threatened that a trade war against the country will result in more harm to the U.S., with a state-run paper threatening that the government will take "countermeasures" against Apple's iPhone and the automotive industry if an economic conflict comes to pass.

Microsoft is trying to one-up Apple’s iMac with its first-ever desktop computer, called the Surface Studio. This Windows-based PC boasts a touchscreen that drops to a 20-degree angle for use as a drafting table of sorts… along with a stratospheric price tag. Could Apple draw inspiration from the Surface Studio for future iMacs?

Read the full article at TidBITS, the oldest continuously published technology publication on the Internet. To get a full-text RSS feed, help support our work and become a TidBITS member! Members also enjoy an ad-free version of our Web site, email delivery of individual articles, the ability to make long comments with live links, and discounts on Take Control orders and other Apple-related products.

According to an app in the Google Play Store, at least 10 million Android users have switched to iOS in the last couple of years. As noted by travel12h, this figure is based on an app called Move to iOS, which helps Android users switch to an iPhone.

Move to iOS — developed by Apple — helps users move content and apps from an Android phone to an Apple smartphone. By October 2015, 1 million to 5 million Android users had installed the app. Less than a year later, that figure was up to 10 million to 50 million.

As travel12h points out, it can’t be assumed that everyone who installed the app swapped to an iPhone. Nor can we assume that the actual number of installations of the app equals the high number in the range. Still, even if we use the minimum figures, that would indicate that at least 10 million Android users have made the switch over the last...

Microsoft is hoping to persuade more developers to create Windows apps by bringing its main coding environment – Visual Studio – to the Mac for the first time. Previously, developers had to use a Windows machine or run a virtual machine on a Mac to write Windows software.

The company seemingly intended to make the announcement at its Connect() developer conference on Wednesday, but The Verge spotted that Microsoft accidentally released the information early in a now-deleted blog post.

Microsoft said that Visual Studio for Mac was designed to be a direct counterpart to the Windows version, though it would not fully achieve this aim from the...

Following the delayed launch of the new wireless headphones in late October, Apple said it needed “a little more time” before they are ready for customers.

The latest word comes from investment bank Barclays, which in a research note we saw said AirPods should enter production in December. That means AirPods could still feasibly be released in time for the final weeks of the holiday shopping season, although a January 2017 launch as previously rumored, or later, is possible.

Barclays has stated that the initial production run will be “fairly small,” totaling between 10 million and 15 million AirPods to start. Depending on demand, Apple could maintain this lower production level or expand it...

Today official reviews for Apple’s new MacBook Pro with Touch Bar have surfaced online as the first preorders for the device arrive to customers this week alongside a retail launch. Apple started shipping pre-orders over the weekend with the first deliveries expected to be in customers’ hands by early this week.

How does the new contextually sensitive Touch Bar panel embedded into the MacBook Pro’s keyboard perform in the real world? And are the rest of the machine’s hardware upgrades enough to warrant the price tag?

The consensus seems to be that most enjoyed using the Touch Bar and noted its potential for the future. There are, however, mixed reviews when it comes to overall performance with many reviewers pointing out the price of the new MacBook Pros in relation to specs, performance, and...

Apple's new Late 2016 15-inch MacBook Pro is the lightest and thinnest MacBook Pro ever, but unlike the company's earlier ultralight MacBook Air, it packs a fast, quad-core Intel CPU and a dedicated AMD Radeon Pro GPU along with 16GB of high speed RAM and other "pro" level niceties. After spending some time with the new flagship, AppleInsider came away impressed at what Apple was able to achieve.

One of our favorite applications just got Touch Bar and Touch ID support.

AgileBits has released version 6.5 of its 1Password password storage utility. The new version now features support for the Touch ID and Touch Bar features on 2016 MacBook Pros.

Touch ID must be enabled from 1Password’s Security Preferences menu, but will then let people unlock the app with a quick fingerprint scan. Touch Bar support should make it easier to run searches, add new items, and switch between vaults as well as lock them down.

While the first Touch Bar-equipped MacBook Pro units have yet to arrive, this marks the first wave of applications supporting the Touch Bar hardware designed by Apple.

The new design of the MacBook Pros is nice and Apple’s decision to put in nothing but Thunderbolt 3 ports has prompted a fresh wave of dongle talk, but the signature feature of the new MacBook Pros was always going to be the Touch Bar.

Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty notes that 37% of Apple's market capitalization, or $216 billion, is held overseas. Should a prospective 10% repatriation allowance occur, the company could save $54 billion in tax expense if it chooses to bring that sum back onshore.

Should the theorized scenario play out, shareholder returns, debt reduction, substantial M&A and a combination of all of the above are cited to be on the table, notes Seeking Alpha. Huberty adds, "It would likely also remove an overhang on the stock that has been in place for many years.”

Apple Music may be working hard to dethrone streaming music market leader Spotify, but it also can’t afford to ignore the other horses in the race. Google Play Music has today launched a major revamp of its iOS and Android apps, using machine-learning to put together context-specific playlists and ensuring that you always have music to listen to even if you forget to download offline music.

The move happens on the same day that Amazon Music Unlimited began its international expansion …

Scosche’s $29.99 MagicMount Wall Charger lets you dock a mobile device such as an iPhone 7/7 Plus to a wall socket. That’s pretty handy, as it helps alleviate cord clutter and entanglements.

The MagicMount Wall Charger is built with “rare-earth” neodymium magnets that the folks at Scosche say won’t damage an iPhone or iPad even while maintaining a tight grip on the devices. Even if the magnets won’t damage iDevices, they can hurt hard disk drives. So don’t place the Wall Charger in, for example, a laptop with an hard drive.

The 12W (2.4A) Perfect Charge USB port automatically detects and charges phones and tablets at the correct rate which ensures safe, fast charges. (The latest iPads charge at 12 watts.) The cradle-free design also also lets you position a device’s screen for optimal viewing.

I’m not sure how important a feature the latter is if you have your iDevice plugged into a...

Is your Mac running slowly or erratically? One thing you can try is resetting the NVRAM (or “non-volatile random access memory.” It’s a tiny bit of your Mac’s memory that stores certain settings in a location that macOS can access quickly.

The settings that are stored in NVRAM depend on the type of Mac you're using and the types of devices connected to it. Info stored in NVRAM can include speaker volume, screen resolution, and startup disk selection.

If you’re experiencing issues related to these features or have had a “kernel panic,” resetting the NVRAM can help. For example, if your Mac starts up from a startup disk other than the one you've specified in Startup Disk preferences, or if a question mark icon appears briefly when your Mac starts up, you might need to reset the NVRAM. Here’s how:

The Chinese government, through the state-run Global Times newspaper, has said that iPhone sales ‘will suffer’ if president-elect Trump follows through on his threatened trade war when he takes office. The comment was made in response to Trump’s campaign promise to apply 45% tariffs to Chinese imports.

If Trump imposes a 45 percent tariff on Chinese imports, China-US trade will be paralyzed. China will take a tit-for-tat approach then. A batch of Boeing orders will be replaced by Airbus. US auto and iPhone sales in China will suffer a setback […]

The new president will be condemned for his recklessness, ignorance and incompetence and bear all the consequences.

The Global Times editorial also claimed that Trump would not in any case have the authority needed to apply the 45% tariff...

Apple, Nike, New Balance, Playboy and Sketchers USA are the most popular U.S. brands according to sales from Alibaba Group Holding’s Singles Day sales. Sales from the day totaled $17.8 billion, up more than 24% from the record $14.3 billion sold last year.

The Alibaba Group is a is a Chinese e-commerce company that provides consumer-to-consumer, business-to-consumer and business-to-business sales services via web portals. China’s Singles Day, held on Nov. 11, is a festival popular among Chinese young people who celebrate the fact that they’re single. This festival has gradually become one of the largest online shopping days in the world.

“Alibaba is using this year’s Singles Day to showcase the number of international brands participating, everyone from Apple, “Victoria’s Secret, Burberry, Gap, [and] Nike, acting as the...

Sunday November 13

Las Vegas is famous for its lights, bright sunny days and copious pedestrian traffic. That no doubt made it the perfect place for clean tech startup EnGoPlanet to test new LED streetlights powered by both photovoltaic panels and kinetic footstep pads...

Maintenance release with improvements and fixes follows major new release for the financial management app. ($74.99 new, free update from Quicken 2017)

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You don't need a massive botnet to launch overwhelming denial of service attacks -- in some cases, a personal PC and so-so broadband are all that's required. Researchers at TDC Security Operations Center have revealed a new attack technique, BlackNur...

Secret's air-your-dirty-laundry service collapsed about as quickly as it rose to prominence, but it looks like it's poised for a comeback thanks to the new political climate. Co-creator David Byttow has vowed that "Secret V2" is on the way as an expl...

Windows 10's bundled Defender security tool can be helpful for basic antivirus protection, but what if you prefer third-party software? The operating system normally steps aside when you run other programs, but antivirus mainstay Eugene Kaspersky (ab...

There have been some massive data breaches in recent years, but the latest might just top them all. LeakedSource reports that a hack targeting Friend Finder Network has exposed over 412 million accounts, most of them (339 million) belonging to sex h...

Read the full article at TidBITS, the oldest continuously published technology publication on the Internet. To get a full-text RSS feed, help support our work and become a TidBITS member! Members also enjoy an ad-free version of our Web site, email delivery of individual articles, the ability to make long comments with live links, and discounts on Take Control orders and other Apple-related products.

Want to see how Hollywood takes on Ghost in the Shell outside of a handful of tiny video clips? You just got your chance. Paramount has released a full-length trailer for its spin on the anime/manga classic, and it's at least interesting -- if not ne...

We're not so sure about Ben and Atari making beautiful music together, though the Ben Heck Show team certainly builds good circuits. Previously, they took apart a keyboard and made a manually activated switch matrix to read the piano keys. Now...

Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg is clearly riled by allegations that his social network skewed the election by allowing fake news to propagate, and he isn't having any of it. The CEO has posted a defense of Facebook in which he argues that the low...

This week sure went sideways in a hurry. After Hillary Clinton's stunning election night collapse, the American people are now faced with four years of well, whatever sorts of fresh hell the President-elect's administration unleashes upon us. Gitmo i...

The Hyperloop keeps getting realer by the day. This week, architects unveiled detailed plans for a next-gen transportation system that will travel from Dubai to Abu Dhabi in just 12 minutes. Meanwhile, Elon Musk announced big plans to build a second...

Apple's new 13-inch MacBook Pro sans Touch Bar and Touch ID is in many ways an evolutionary update, offering would-be buyers a lightweight, relatively powerful portable rig with a beautiful Retina display and solid keyboard and trackpad. But is a major redesign and minor internal upgrades worth a starting price of $1,499?

You're about to get one of the best views of the Moon in decades. When the celestial body reaches its closest point to the Earth in the early hours of November 14th (in the US, shortly after 6AM Eastern), it'll be the largest supermoon observed in o...

Saturday November 12

Unlike some big streaming video services, Vudu isn't sitting on the fence when it comes to offline playback. The Walmart-owned provider has revamped its Android and iOS apps with several big features, most notably an option to download your rentals...

American asteroid mining companies are allowed to keep their hauls, but what about European outfits? They should be set from now on. Luxembourg (which already has its own space mining tech) has adopted a draft law that gives private operations the...

Like it or not, you're going to have a hard time escaping the clutches of landline internet data caps. Cox has expanded its trial 1TB data caps from Cleveland to include customers in Florida and Georgia. Once a two-bill grace period expires, you'll...

If IMAX is going to get serious about virtual reality, it's going to need some cash... thankfully, it's not having trouble on that front. The media mainstay has wrapped up the first phase of an effort to raise $50 million for creating "at least" 25...

It's a big moment for video game charities: Desert Bus for Hope has launched its 10th annual campaign. As is their custom, the volunteer team will play the Desert Bus mini game from Penn & Teller's Smoke and Mirrors for as long as they can in th...

Facebook's plan to revive its public group chat feature just became official. The social network tells the Courier Mail that it's rolling out a test version of Messenger Rooms on Android devices in Australia and Canada. As leaked code suggested, th...

It's easy to underestimate the awesome superpowers of the tiny plants we all know as algae. The photosynthetic organisms are minuscule powerhouses capable of generating light and energy while scrubbing greenhouse gas emissions from t...

SoHo is one of the trendiest neighborhoods in New York City. It's home to hundreds of shops from some of the most popular brands, including Apple, Adidas and, as of last month, Google. Now you can add Nike to this list. The sportswear giant will soon...

Hyperloop One, which aims to fulfill the vision of high-speed transportation promoted by Elon Musk, has signed a deal to develop a line between Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The project reportedly will have several stations throughout Dubai connecting the hyperloop system to Abu Dhabi. Pods will carry passengers and cargo between the two. Dubai's government-backed port operator, DP World, reportedly also has signed an agreement with Hyperloop One to look into using the technology at its industrial Jebel Ali port.

Read the full article at TidBITS, the oldest continuously published technology publication on the Internet. To get a full-text RSS feed, help support our work and become a TidBITS member! Members also enjoy an ad-free version of our Web site, email delivery of individual articles, the ability to make long comments with live links, and discounts on Take Control orders and other Apple-related products.

Japanese comics, called manga, are hugely popular. Although you probably knew that, you probably don't know the extent of it. In 2015, Japan's bestselling manga series, One Piece, sold more than 14 million copies. It helps that the format runs a huge...

Today on In Case You Missed It: Snap Inc. dropped a Spectacles vending machine in Southern California and the sunglasses were snapped up in no time. If you don't have the thousands of dollars handy that you'd need to pay for them on eBay, you can...

The Internet Association -- a group of 40 top internet companies including Airbnb, Amazon, Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Netflix, Twitter, Uber and Yahoo -- issued an open letter on Monday that congratulates Donald Trump on his victory and offers a long list of policy positions they hope he'll consider during his time as president. From a report on CNET:That list includes:Upholding Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act so internet companies can't get sued easily for things their users say or do online.Upholding Section 512 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act so internet companies can't get easily sued if they quickly remove copyrighted content that users upload (such as infringing photos and YouTube videos). Reforming the 30-year-old Electronic Communications Privacy Act -- "Internet users must have the same protections for their inbox as they do for their mailbox," states the association.
Supporting strong encryption (Trump called for a boycott of Apple when it...

It features both Wi-Fi and Near Field Communication (NFC) technology. Using Pyle’s free proprietary PicKit app, users can print photos wirelessly.

The Portable Instant Printer prints JPEG and PNG images at a photo size of 2.1 by 3.4 inches. With built-in D2T2 Technology, the images have excellent color reproduction and no unsightly white border lines, according to the folks at Pyle USA. To prevent unwanted fingerprints and hassles with cleaning and maintenance, the portable printer has a 10-piece cartridge that can purportedly be changed in under a minute.

Audioengine has introduced the HD3 wireless music system with a variety of connection options: wireless or wired, digital or analog.

Amplifiers are built inside the left speaker for an efficient mini stereo system. Audioengine has included connections for your phone, tablet, computer, and turntable - and you can even add a subwoofer. Wireless setup takes about a minute as there’s no software to install as there are no apps to download, and no Wi-Fi passwords to enter. If you’re using HD3 with your Mac, you can connect directly to your computer with a USB cable for a high-end listening experience. If you’re not keen on USB or wireless you can use one of the included audio cables.

HD3 also includes an audiophile-quality headphone amplifier. Audio performance is critical but speakers also need to look good, so Audioengine has included aluminum trim accents, detachable magnetic grills, and real wood veneers that blend with any decor.

While Apple prepared its first shipments of Touch Bar-equipped MacBook Pros, it meanwhile launched its first refurbished iPhone sales in years, and Beats' Powerbeats3 headphones, which AppleInsider gave a first look.

Alawar and Warm Lamp Games have announced that their dystopia simulator Beholder is now available on Steam for Mac, Windows, and Linux systems. The game puts you in the shoes of Carl, a state-installed Landlord tasked by a totalitarian State to spy on his tenants.

Here’s how the game is described: “As Carl, the landlord of an apartment house employed to serve the state, new tenants are moving in and out, and at first impression, your daily routine is simply to make the property attractive to its tenants. Little do they know that as a servant of the the state you have ulterior motives and will use any means available to observe, whether it's spying, eavesdropping or wiretapping as you build tenant profiles to report any illegal activities to the authorities.”

“Inspired heavily by George Orwell’s groundbreaking 1984 the philosophical narrative of Beholder, opens up questions around issues of social...

It's the end of an era. Obama's out (in two months), Trump's in, and uncertainty abounds as details about how, exactly, our president-elect is going to change things slowly emerge. Managing Editor Terrence O'Brien has been r...

Apple has now started shipping the first new MacBook Pro with Touch Bar orders with the delivery notifications indicating that the laptops will arrive in people’s hands as soon as Monday, November 14.

Several 9to5Mac readers and others online report receiving shipping notifications from Apple and or UPS, as pictured above and below. All shipped orders we’ve seen so far are for 15-inch MacBook Pro models. Shipment alerts for the 13-inch units will likely follow soon.

A new Juniper Research study has forecast that there will be nearly 60 million smartphone virtual reality (VR) headsets shipped in 2021, an increase of around 240% on an expected 16.8 million this year. However, the lower price of these devices means they will only account for 7% of hardware revenue.

While millions of consumers are already using VR on smartphone-based devices like Google Cardboard and Samsung Gear VR, developers need to go beyond the simple experience-based apps currently available and offer compelling content to keep users engaged, according to the research group.

Apple has been granted a patent (number 9,489,086) for “finger hover detection for improved typing” when using onscreen keyboards on devices such as iPhone and iPads.

According to the invention, typing on touchscreens is improved by “dynamically and automatically” positioning the desired home-row keys of an onscreen keyboard below the user's fingers while his/her fingers are hovering above the surface. Apple says that this reduces the need for the user to look at the onscreen keyboard while typing.

The location of each of the user's fingers while hovering and/or resting is monitored. Correlation between the hover sensor data and touch sensor data increases the confidence level by which the system can determine which of the user's fingers were used to select a key, according to Apple. By determining which finger was used to make the selection, the system accurately disambiguates which letter the user intended to type.

Fixes several crashes in the word processor designed for professional writers. ($39 new, free update, 128 MB)

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Some folks think Apple will enter the 3D printer market. I'm dubious, but, whoever the vendors, someone's going to make money off the market if data from MarketsandMarkets is correct.

The research group predicts the 3D printing market will be worth US$8.41 billion by 2020. The elements behind the rapid upsurge in the market are the innovative and advanced technologies, customized products, governments funding, wide unexploited application market, rapid development of the products at a low cost, and less time-to-market, according to MarketsandMarkets.

Europe is expected to surpass America in terms of the 3D Printing Market revenue by 2020. The foremost factors accountable for the expansion of 3D printing market include new and improved 3D printing technologies, wide range of materials (polymers, metals/alloys, sand, ceramics, living tissue), government funding, broad application scope, and increased...

It was a relatively quiet week on the Apple news front this week. There are few Apple headlines worth investigating, though. The important ones are in this slideshow. Click on the link to get more information.

The 7 and 7 Plus are too new to be included in the refurb store, but you can pick up an iPhone 6s and 6s Plus for as low as $449—that’s for the 16GB 6s. The 16GB 6s Plus is $529, and the 64GB 6s Plus is $589.

Square Enix's long-awaited next entry in the 30-year-old Final Fantasy franchise arrives November 29th on PS4 and Xbox One, but first up is this promotional tie-in from Audi. In the run up to Final Fantasy XV , Sony Pictures released the all-CG rende...

Friday November 11

With the launch of its new 13-inch MacBook Pro without Touch Bar, and subsequent 11-inch MacBook Air discontinuation, Apple appears to be drawing down the thin-and-light series in favor of more affordable pro laptops. To see how this plays out in real life, AppleInsider pit the new entry-level MacBook Pro against last year's 13-inch MacBook Air.

Back in April, a judge found Amazon liable for in-app purchases made by children without their parent's permission, and now he's established a method for the retailer to pay them back. According to Reuters, Amazon will have to set up a notice-and-cla...

Samsung is eager to get developers to build applications for its Tizen smartphones. In an effort to drive up interest, the company has created the Tizen Mobile App Incentive Program, which will offer $9 million in cash prizes from February through Oc...

Software Updates via MacUpdate

SpamSieve 2.9.27 - Robust spam filter fo...

SpamSieve is a robust spam filter for major email clients that uses powerful Bayesian spam filtering.
SpamSieve understands what your spam looks like in order to block it all, but also learns what... Read more

VueScan 9.5.62 - Scanner software with a...

VueScan is a scanning program that works with most high-quality flatbed and film scanners to produce scans that have excellent color fidelity and color balance. VueScan is easy to use, and has... Read more

Fantastical 2.3.2 - Create calendar even...

Fantastical 2 is the Mac calendar you'll actually enjoy using. Creating an event with Fantastical is quick, easy, and fun:
Open Fantastical with a single click or keystroke
Type in your event... Read more

PCalc 4.4.4 - Full-featured scientific c...

PCalc is a full-featured, scriptable scientific calculator with support for hexadecimal, octal, and binary calculations, as well as an RPN mode, programmable functions, and an extensive set of unit... Read more

Alfred 3.2.1 - Quick launcher for apps a...

Alfred is an award-winning productivity application for OS X. Alfred saves you time when you search for files online or on your Mac. Be more productive with hotkeys, keywords, and file actions at... Read more

OmniPlan 3.6 - Robust project management...

With OmniPlan, you can create logical, manageable project plans with Gantt charts, schedules, summaries, milestones, and critical paths. Break down the tasks needed to make your project a success,... Read more

Backblaze 4.2.0.990 - Online backup serv...

Backblaze is an online backup service designed from the ground-up for the Mac. With unlimited storage available for $5 per month, as well as a free 15-day trial, peace of mind is within reach with... Read more

AppDelete 4.3.1 - $7.99

AppDelete is an uninstaller that will remove not only applications but also widgets, preference panes, plugins, and screensavers along with their associated files. Without AppDelete these associated... Read more

Apple GarageBand 10.1.4 - Complete recor...

The new GarageBand is a whole music creation studio right inside your Mac -- complete with keyboard, synths, orchestral and percussion instruments, presets for guitar and voice, an entirely... Read more

Adobe Lightroom 6.8 - Import, develop, a...

Adobe Lightroom is available as part of Adobe Creative Cloud for as little as $9.99/month bundled with Photoshop CC as part of the photography package. Lightroom 6 is also available for purchase as a... Read more

Latest Forum Discussions

Galaxy on Fire 3 - Manticore brings the series back for another round of daring space battles. It's familiar territory for folks who are familiar with the franchise. If you've beaten the game and are looking to broaden your horizons, might we... | Read more »

The best apps for your holiday gift exch...

What's that, you say? You still haven't started your holiday shopping? Don't beat yourself up over it -- a lot of people have been putting it off, too. It's become easier and easier to procrastinate gift shopping thanks to a number of apps that... | Read more »

MyTona, based in the chilly Siberian city of Yakutsk, has brought a little festive fun to its hidden object game Seekers Notes: Hidden Mystery. The Christmas update introduces some new inhabitants to players, and with them a chance to win plenty of... | Read more »

PINE GROVE 1.0
Device: iOS Universal
Category: Games
Price: $1.99, Version: 1.0 (iTunes)
Description:
A pine grove where there are no footsteps of people due to continuous missing cases. The case is still unsolved and nothing has... | Read more »

Niantic teases new Pokémon announcement...

After rumors started swirling yesterday, it turns out there is an official Pokémon GO update on its way. We’ll find out what’s in store for us and our growing Pokémon collections tomorrow during the Starbucks event, but Niantic will be revealing... | Read more »

3 reasons why Nicki Minaj: The Empire is...

Nicki Minaj is as business-savvy as she is musically talented and she’s proved that by launching her own game. Designed by Glu, purveyors of other fine celebrity games like cult favorite Kim Kardashian: Hollywood, Nicki Minaj: The Empire launched... | Read more »

Clash of Clans is getting its own animat...

Riding on its unending wave of fame and success, Clash of Clans is getting an animated web series based on its Clash-A-Rama animated shorts.As opposed to the current shorts' 60 second run time, the new and improved Clash-A-Rama will be comprised of... | Read more »

Leaks hint at Pokémon GO and Starbucks C...

Leaked images from a hub for Starbucks employees suggests that a big Pokémon GO event with the coffee giant could begin this very week. The images appeared on Reddit and hint at some exciting new things to come for Niantic's smash hit game.
| Read more »

DietSensor, Inc., a developer of smart food and nutrition applications designed to fight diabetes and obesity and help improve overall fitness, has announced the launch of its DietSensor app for... Read more

Best Buy has dropped their price on the 64GB Apple TV to $159.99 including free shipping. That’s $40 off MSRP.
32GB Apple TVs are on sale right now for $98 on Sams Club’s online store. That’s $51 off... Read more

12-inch Retina MacBooks, Apple refurbished, n...

Apple has restocked a full line of Certified Refurbished 2016 12″ Retina MacBooks, now available for $200-$260 off MSRP. Refurbished 2015 models are available starting at $929. Apple will include a... Read more

Apple has Certified Refurbished 13″ MacBook Airs available starting at $849. An Apple one-year warranty is included with each MacBook, and shipping is free:
- 13″ 1.6GHz/8GB/128GB MacBook Air: $849 $... Read more

Apple refurbished iMacs available for up to $...

Apple has Certified Refurbished 2015 21″ & 27″ iMacs available for up to $350 off MSRP. Apple’s one-year warranty is standard, and shipping is free. The following models are available:
- 21″ 3.... Read more

Apple’s Education discount saves up to $300 o...

Purchase a new Mac or iPad using Apple’s Education Store and take up to $300 off MSRP. All teachers, students, and staff of any educational institution qualify for the discount. Shipping is free:
-... Read more

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